Breaking Reasons
by Monkeybarrel
Summary: Breaking the air conditioner was an accident. Getting locked in the supply room on the other hand... Executive Committee oneshot.


Disclaimer- Executive Committee is owned and operated by Minekura Kazuya

**Breaking Reasons**

Why was it always his fault?

Tokitoh stormed down the hallway, his sneakers squeaking with each stomp.

It's not like he pushed the air conditioner out the window! It was an accident! Besides, that jerk Fujiwara started it!_ "Kubota-sempai, sit by meeeeee. It's cooler by the air conditioner. Kubota-sempaiiiiiiii."_

He didn't know how it fell out the window. He just wanted to crank it up so the air could reach further. And when the knob wouldn't turn all the way, who wouldn't shake it and hit it a little? C'mon!

The squeaking and the bright reflective sheen weren't clues enough about the floor's just mopped state. Nor did he read the bright orange "Wet Floors!" sign before kicking it. He did note the way it smoothly sailed down to the other end of the hall. He smirked.

"And the crowd goes wild!" He pumped his fists in the air. That's right. Who's got mad skills?

The hallway's silence answered him first, followed up by a slow clapping sound. Clap clap clap. Tokitoh looked up. He grimaced.

The Vice President of the Student Council stood by the door of one of the classrooms at the end of the hall, right next to where the warning sign now stood.

"Nicely done." Tachibana smiled. "Although I do recall a rule against destroying school property."

"What's destroyed?" Tokitoh scowled and pointed at the sign. "It's fine!"

"Oh?" Tachibana tapped his cheek. "Perhaps I am mistaken, and you're not on your way to beg for a working air conditioner to replace the one that you just happen to throw out a window?"

How did he- "I don't beg to anyone!" Followed by, "And it FELL on its own!"

"...Of course." Tachibana turned and started down the stairs. He didn't look back when he called. "Coming?"

Tokitoh stood his ground. "For what?"

Tachibana's words echoed around him. "To replace what you didn't destroy."

Tokitoh waited a second and then followed, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "Whatever." He wished his sneakers wouldn't squeak so much. It gave off the total opposite impression of anger and righteousness. He sped up to see if he could out-run the sound.

"Oh, and do be careful." Tachibana's voice rose up from the bottom of the stairs.

Tokitoh's response was two quick squeaks and a loud thump, followed by a long string of swears.

"The floors are still wet." Tachibana smiled and took a set of keys out of his pocket. As he searched for the one to unlock the supply room, he listened as Tokitoh squeaked and swore down the steps. This time, Tachibana noted with satisfaction, he walked a little slower.

By the time Tokitoh arrived, glowering and red-faced, he had found the right key. "Let's see what we have. I think there's another air con. If not, I'm sure there are a couple fans." He opened the door for Tokitoh and arched his eyebrows. "Care to look?"

Tokitoh pushed past him with just a huff.

"Happy to help." Tachibana smiled as he shut the door

The supply room glowed in the late afternoon light. The sun beat down on this side of the school for half the day, and the enclosed space trapped in that heat. Tachibana loosened his collar and leaned against the door. He watched as Tokitoh moved from one corner of the room to the other, pulling boxes out and shoving them aside.

"Paint. More paint. Even more paint. What the hell are they painting? Erasers! Who needs this many erasers! Oh- bingo!" He grabbed a box on the floor, a picture of an air conditioner drawn on the side. He bent his knees and leaned down to pick it up. A second later he stood up with the box in his hands, but his face looked down at it, confused. "What the-" He shook the box.

Tachibana raised his eyebrows. "Are you planning on destroying this one as well?"

"NO!" Tokitoh glared. "It's…too light." He put the box on the ground and started to tear at the top.

"You are always saying how strong you are, Tokitoh-kun." Tachibana walked over and stood over him.

"You better believe it," he opened the box and peaked inside. "You got to be shitting me."

Tachibana looked over his shoulder. "Ahhhh, so that's where the extra towels were being stored. We've been looking for those for months."

Tokitoh dropped the box and kicked it. It hit the wall with a small bounce. "There's nothing here." He turned and stomped back to the door. "Just paint and erasers and fucking towels. No fans. And no air conditioners."

"A pity." Tachibana took a pen out of his pocket, bent down, and wrote Towels in large block letters on the box Tokitoh had just dropped. As he finished, he heard the angry rattle of a door knob being turned and turned to no avail.

"What the-" Tokitoh looked back. "Hey, the door's locked."

"Hm?" Tachibana stood up and ambled towards him. "That can't be. I unlocked it." He reached past Tokitoh and twisted the knob. It indeed did not open. "Curious."

"What do you mean 'Curious'? Open the door. You got the keys."

"Do I?" Tachibana felt his pockets. "Why, I do not."

"What?"

Tachibana felt the knob again, and this time, shook the door a little. He could hear the jangle of the keys on the other side. "I do believe they are in the door. On the other side."

"If they're in the door, how the hell are we locked in?"

"Old school. Old doors. Who knows how they work sometimes. I guess you actually have to have the key turned in the lock to make it open. Otherwise, it will just stay locked." Tachibana sighed and reached for his shirt, popping open another button. "Funny, isn't it?"

----

Tokitoh would have broken down the door, but Tachibana reminded him that neither he nor the Executive Committee could afford to buy yet another door after the several they've already destroyed. He used this same excuse when Tokitoh threatened to throw one of the many paint cans through a window after they realized all the windows were painted shut.

After twenty minutes, Tokitoh finally stopped pacing and slumped by the door. He pressed his ear to it and listened. The hallway was completely silent. No footsteps. No voices. Nothing. Classes had been out for over two hours. Their window faced none of the playing fields where multiple sports clubs were outside enjoying the late sun. The other clubs that were still going weren't anyway near this part of the school, not even the Executive Committee...

"I'm sure someone will come by soon," Tachibana looked out the window, his voice soft and calm. "They did know where you were going."

Tokitoh didn't reply. He didn't say, "No, they didn't know where I was going because I just left. I didn't say I was going to find another air conditioner. I don't even know how you knew I was coming." None of that. He just stayed on the floor. The linoleum was at least cool to the touch still. He bent his head down, but that just seemed to trap in more heat close to his body. He lifted it up again and rested it against the door. His hand went to his school shirt and started to unbutton it. He threw it off. The t-shirt underneath stuck to his skin, and he picked at it and shook it, trying to bring in air between the gaps at his neck and waist.

He opened his eyes, and looked over to Tachibana. Tachibana was next to the window, his face masked by the glare streaming through.

"What are you lookin' at?"

"I'm looking outside," Tachibana replied smoothly, although his head was no longer turned towards the window.

"Whatever." Tokitoh didn't care. The air seemed to steam up in front of his eyes so he closed them again. He slid down until his entire body lay across the floor. He lifted his t-shirt up so his back could get the full effect of the linoleum, "Ahhhhh..."

The boxes around him offered some shelter from the sun streaming through the windows. He lay in their warm gloom, his eyes closed. As his breathing slowed, he wondered, briefly, what Kubota was doing at that moment.

"Why did you break the air conditioner?" Tachibana's far-away voice filtered through his slowing thoughts.

"I didn't," he said. "It was…an accident."

"Then how did it happen?" Less far-away then before.

"It just...happened. It was stuck on medium. Wouldn't go higher."

"And then you pushed it out the window?" Closer than before.

"No...just shook it a little. You know, to make it...move."

"And then when that didn't work?" It came from right above him. He could feel the heat of someone sitting down next to him. He wanted to turn away, so he flipped over and laid his stomach on the floor instead. Ahhh...this is better. It was warm from his back being on it, but it still felt cooler somehow, like the other side of the pillow that you turn over at night.

"...I just wanted the air to reach further." He felt flushed with the memory filling his mind, like a dream. "I didn't know it would fall."

"I see." It seemed right next to his ear. He twitched, his hand shooting up for a moment as if to swat it.

He felt something soft brush against his back. Just once. He opened his eyes blearily, and turned his head. Tachibana lay against the floor next to him. His shirt open all the way, his chest resting on the floor, his face turned towards him, his glasses lay next to him.

"What are you doing?"

"Following your example." Tachibana smiled, his eyes closed. "It is cooler down here."

"Hmmph." Tokitoh turned away. With his head against the floor, he could peer out the crack beneath the door. 

"Do you break everything when you want it to work?"

Tokitoh tensed. His sleepiness was suddenly gone. He turned on Tachibana. "You don't know anything," he growled, "So don't act like you do."

"True." Tachibana looked back at him, his eyes squinting without his glasses. Like Kubota's did... "But let's say I followed your example again. And when something I wanted didn't work the way that I thought it should," he reached out and held a finger over Tokitoh's face and then dropped it down and held it over his chest. "should I then force it? Hit it and shake it and push it until it does what I want it to do?" He leaned forward as he pressed his finger down onto Tokitoh's skin. "Is that the right way? The only way?" He let his nail dig in.

Tokitoh's eyes widened a little, but then narrowed. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"What do you think?" Tachibana pressed his hand onto Tokitoh's chest and moved forward, their faces just inches apart. "How to get something to work properly," he slid his hand down, "without violence." 

Tokitoh grabbed his hand and threw it off. "Fuck off." He sat up and pushed his shirt down, the heat completely forgotten.

Tachibana licked his lips and reached for his glasses. "Although, I have to say, I wouldn't mind trying out your way." He gave Tokitoh a wink. "With a little fine-tuning added."

"Go ahead and try." Tokitoh glared at him and cracked his knuckles.

They stared at each other, the light painting the room a dark orange. Tokitoh's eyes didn't move from Tachibana as his hand reached for the knob. He used it to pull himself up. It still wouldn't turn. "I don't give a shit about this door. Either it's gettin' kicked in or it's you. I'd say it's your pick, but I don't give a shit what you want." With one last look at Tachibana, he turned and lifted his leg.

Before he could make contact, he felt two arms grab him from behind, and a voice, soft and calm, whisper in his ear. "But how well do you break from behind, hm?" Tokitoh froze, but only for a second. In the next, he was reaching up to grab Tachibana by the neck.

"Well enough," a voice, cool and nonchalant, interrupted. Tokitoh stopped, his arms in mid-air. The hands around Tokitoh tensed for one moment, and then retracted. Tokitoh watched as the knob that hadn't turned a moment before suddenly started to move. With a click, it swung open.

A tall figure leaned against the now open door, an unlit cigarette dangling from his mouth. He squinted at them. "Boy, it sure is hot in here," Kubota smiled. "You two must have been roasting." He leaned down and slowly picked up Tokitoh's school shirt that he'd tossed away earlier. He held it out. Tokitoh grimaced and made to grab it from him, but Kubota moved and held his arm out into the hallway.

"C'mon, Kubo-chan."

"Did you get what you needed?" Kubota looked first at Tokitoh and then at Tachibana.

"No," Tokitoh said. "Not quite," answered Tachibana.

"Too bad." Kubota shrugged and tossed Tokitoh his shirt. "I sure do miss that air conditioner." He stood away from the door, allowing them room to come out. "Ready to go home? Everyone else already left because of the heat."

"I'm so ready." Tokitoh put his shirt back on, but left it hanging open. "Let's go." He moved past Kubota, but shot one last glare behind him. "Stay out of my way, or I'm not going to care what I break next."

"And I'll be there to watch you pay for it, Tokitoh-kun." Tachibana smiled in return.

Tokitoh stomped down the hall. "C'mon, Kubo-chan!"

"Coming." Kubota raised his eyebrows and turned back to Tachibana who was about to leave the room. "Oh, looks like you forgot something."

"Hm?" Tachibana stepped back and looked around. "What would that be?"

"The keys." Kubota closed the door on him. They both heard the click of the lock. "They're right here if you need them though," he called through the door, and jangled the keys for effect.

"Dirty pool, Kubota-kun." There was a rattle at the knob.

"Just following your example, Vice President." Kubota turned and started to walk away. He stopped "One more thing. Tokitoh breaks things to make them work. But I break things to make them broken. It would be good to remember that."

The other side of the door was silent in response. Kubota smiled, lit his cigarette, and walked away. "The floor sure does look clean."

-----

Twenty minutes later, there was a jangle of the keys, and the door to the supply room opened. This time, it was the President of the Student Council leaning against it. They looked at each other for a long moment- Matsumoto with his arms crossed, Tachibana with his shirt open.

Matsumoto finally broke the silence. "I would recommend that you not tease him. It's not worth it."

"And who would you be referring to?"

Matsumoto turned, the keys in his hand. "And I would recommend not teasing me either."

Tachibana bowed. "Yes, sir." He followed after him, only stopping to close the door. He smiled at the all too-familiar click of the lock.

----

"What took you so long?"

"I could ask you the same thing?"

"We were locked in. What was I supposed to do?"

"What you usually do? Break a window."

"How would we pay for it? We can't even buy another air conditioner."

"...that's true."

Tokitoh stopped and looked down at his feet. The ground was awash in blue under the early evening sky. "I'm sorry."

Kubota was ahead of him. He turned. "About what?" The cigarette moved up and down as he spoke.

Tokitoh just looked at him.

"It was an accident." Kubota said.

"Yeah, but...I could have not- accidentally...made it fall."

"It was broken anyway." Kubota shrugged. "It only worked if you stood right next to it. That's not much help. Not in this heat."

Tokitoh took that in. "Yeah, and Fujiwara always was the one standing in front of it. That bastard." He caught up to Kubota. "God, what a jerk. I hate that guy."

"Hmmm." Kubota walked with him. He reached over and dropped him arm across Tokitoh's shoulder. "The next one will work better, I'm sure." He squeezed. "Or you could just break it to make it better."

"Hey!"

Kubota let go and walked ahead of him, his arms crossed behind his head. He let his cigarette dangle, a thin line of smoke trailing next to him as he walked. He listened to the voice behind him grow louder and more insistent. He smiled, and looked up at the twilight sky, and thought about the not-working air conditioner at home.

But it wasn't Tokitoh who broke it.


End file.
